There are many catalogs, brochures, and other publications from independent manufacturers of masonry blocks that are available to shown the various styles of blocks that are available for building wall constructions. Such blocks, however, are square and/or rectangular in shape in their outside dimensions, and the decorative parts of the block are usually not the design of the block itself, but are designs that are molded or built into the outer surfaces of the block. These blocks have limited utility when used as wall blocks because there are a limited number of ways in which the blocks can be used. Further, such blocks do not have joints that, in combination with connector blocks, can be articulated to give circular walls, or serpentine wall constructions, nor do they have the other advantages of the blocks of the instant invention, which advantages will be set forth in this specification infra.
Other blocks that have been disclosed for use in building masonry walls, generally in buildings, take the form of, for example, the interlocking cement block provided by the disclosure of A. J. Cilento, et al, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,185,497, issued on Jan. 2, 1940 in which there is shown an interlocking brick building product.
Aside from the prior art provided by the Cilento et. al. disclosure, the applicants herein are aware of several other building blocks which are standard and comprise the prior art, some of which are available commercially.
For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 1,234,990, issued Jul. 31, 1917 to W. E. Wilson, there is disclosed a wall construction using hollow building blocks having an interiorly webbed construction that will allow them to cooperate when in a wall or other structure to afford horizontal air passages, while the vertical webs or walls lend support to any wall constructed therefrom.
A second disclosure can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 1,700,542, which issued Jan. 29, 1929 to J. A. O'Donnell in which there is shown a building tile having a fluted surface which allows for the inclusion of cement or mortar when the blocks are used for building a wall.
Other blocks include those disclosed by Iannarelli, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,631,885, issued Dec. 30, 1986; Salazar in U.S. Pat. No. 4,590,726, issued May 27, 1986; Rubenstein, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,951,001, issued Aug. 30, 1960; Johnson, in U.S. Pat. No. 245,340, issued Aug. 9, 1977; Seat, in U.S. Pat. No. 1,458,551, issued Jun. 12, 1923; Dula, in U.S. Pat. No. 1,411,005, issued Mar. 28, 1922; Colt, in U.S. Pat. No. 1,262,308, issued Apr. 9, 1918; Tsanoff, in U.S. Pat. No. 1,338,468, issued Apr. 27, 1920; Podmore, in U.S. Pat. No. 772,476, issued Oct. 18, 1904, and Veyon, in U.S. Pat. No. 776,441, issued Nov. 29, 1904.
Also, there is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,549, which issued on Jun. 22, 1982 to Robert W. Dean, a composite module, which is a building block which can be severed after it is manufactured, to be used for constructing a decorative exterior finished wall structure. This block can only be severed by a machine, and is not adaptable to on-the-job severing by a hand chisel and the like. Also, this building block does not seem to have the capacity for fulfilling the needs that the blocks of the instant invention have.
Thus, none of the art known to the inventors is believed to anticipate or make obvious the building blocks of the instant invention or their use to build wall structures that are retaining, decorative, open, walls, that give the maximum amount of lineal feet versus square feet coverage. Further, the blocks of this invention can be stacked vertically without the use of mortar, provide excellent sound barrier capabilities, allow for construction on irregular terrain, provide good "shadow", beauty, flexible pattern change, and articulative joints, and provide a center of gravity such that the walls do not lean or tumble down, yet still provide an open architecture which will allow air flow in, around, and through the wall, yet limit vision past the wall to provide privacy, and, still provide an overall aesthetic appearance.